Job Details

The mission of the Planes of Fame Air Museum is to preserve aviation history, inspire an interest in aviation, educate the public, and honor aviation pioneers and veterans.

Our efforts at preservation and restoration have assembled one of the most extensive collections of rare and historic aircraft in the world. Putting many of these planes back in the sky allows new generations to appreciate our nation's aviation heritage. These efforts continue on a daily basis at the Museum through exhibits and educational programming. From guided tours, school field trips, and lectures, the educational efforts of the Museum play an essential part of our ongoing activities. Our signature, annual program is the Air Show, coupled with Skyward Bound, a program for high school students that connects them to careers in aviation and aerospace.

While the current base of museum operations is located in Chino, California, in 2022, the Museum signed a lease agreement at the Santa Maria Airport in Santa Maria, California. Groundbreaking began in 2025 on a multi‑phase project that will create a substantial presence for the Museum on 23 acres at this historic airport. Phase One is expected to be completed and open to the public in 2026. As the new Planes of Fame Air Museum develops a footprint in Santa Maria, it will create new and exciting educational opportunities for youth and adults of all ages to connect with the fields of aviation, aerospace, and STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, and math).

As with any new museum project, team members brought in at this early stage should enjoy the fast‑paced nature of a new museum build project and find excitement in the opportunity to craft and shape the foundational programs, exhibits, and operations of the new organization. The Director of Education job description has responsibilities in this early stage which are anticipated to be reassigned to direct reports as the museum's financial footing is planted at the new location, and grows in the first year or two of operations. Candidates who enjoy early stage projects, start‑ups, and possess an entrepreneurial spirit will align well with the organization's needs.

Summary of Position

The Planes of Fame Air Museum seeks a passionate, creative, organized education leader to spearhead the creation and deployment of mission aligned programming for the Museum as it embarks on its new development in Santa Maria, California. Reporting to the Executive Director, the Director of Education will be instrumental in building upon early community engagement in the region to hone in on key partnership opportunities for school field trips, school and community outreach, family programs, senior programs, scout programs, and homeschool audiences.

This is an exciting time for the Planes of Fame Air Museum and the successful candidate must have the ability to manage projects from origin to completion, manage staff, and lead and cultivate a volunteer corps. This role will additionally be involved in exhibit content development as the museum continues to evolve, ensuring educational standards and teacher input is included by exhibit designers, and will liaise with the exhibit design firm as the project manager. At the beginning stages of the museum project, the Director of Education will also be expected to oversee the museum's collections and their move from the Chino location to the Santa Maria location, with the Executive Director and with the Chino location's director of education and collections. At the outset of this position, direct reports may be volunteer based however the Director of Education is anticipated to have the following paid positions reporting to them, as funding allows: Educator and Volunteer Specialist and Community & School Programs Coordinator.

Responsibilities

• Lead education and public programs department and oversee hiring and management of 1‑2 coordinators and a core of paid educators, specialists, and volunteer docents;
• Supervise the education and volunteer specialist (anticipated hire date is July, 2026);
• Develop and manage annual operational budget for education programs;
• Represent Planes of Fame Air Museum in the Santa Maria, California community with a goal of developing at least three critical partnerships that grow museum attendance and revenue;
• Serve as key liaison with school district partners with a goal to drive field trip programs;
• With Executive Director, develop and steward teacher advisory board;
• With Community & School Programs Coordinator develop and implement school outreach programs with a goal of at least 2 signature K‑8th grade classroom programs and 1 signature middle school Family Science Night program;
• Develop and implement curriculum for all program areas, with coordinators;
• With Executive Director, implement and refine educational program strategy;
• Write, execute, and manage grants for educational programs, in partnership with development consultants or staff;
• Create supplemental materials for school field trips that align museum exhibitions with California Common Core State Learning Standards for science, technology, engineering, math, history, and art;
• Oversee the Skyward Bound program and develop expansion plan to serve middle and elementary school students with a goal of inspiring students to identify pathways for careers in aviation and aerospace;
• Oversee paid summer internship program for high school students;
• With Community & School Programs Coordinator, develop and implement calendar of events to engage families, seniors, and scouts;
• Serve as project manager for new museum's exhibit design and building process;
• Keep Executive Director up to date on schedule changes or potential budget adjustments for exhibit design and build;
• Assist in management of collections move from Chino location to Santa Maria location;
• Ensure new collections storage spaces meet expectations and standards required for the nature of the Planes of Fame collection;
• With volunteer coordinator, develop and implement training manual and related materials;
• With volunteer coordinator and Executive Director, create stewardship plan for volunteers;
• Participate in museum events as needed;
• Other duties as assigned.

Qualifications

Required

• Minimum 2 years of experience managing employees;
• Bachelor's degree in education, history, STEM disciplines, or related discipline;
• Minimum 5 years working in an informal learning setting such as a museum, zoo, botanical garden, historic house, or youth development organization;
• Minimum 1 year of project management experience;
• Demonstrated ability to develop and teach curriculum that is aligned with a state's educational standards;
• Demonstrated ability to develop and manage organizational budgets;
• Demonstrated ability to develop and nurture community relationships with other nonprofits and educational systems;
• Passion and excitement for the organization's mission and growth mindset;
• Proficient in Microsoft office applications;
• Exceptional project management skills;

Preferred

• Master's degree in education, history, STEM discipline, non‑profit management, museum studies, or related discipline;
• 5 or more years managing employees;
• 10 or more years in an informal learning setting such as a museum, zoo, botanical garden, historic house, or youth development organization;
• Bilingual Spanish and English speaking;
• Experience working with historical museum collections;
• Experience with ticketing or registration systems;
• Knowledge of and experience with the Santa Maria community and greater Santa Barbara County region;
• Experience writing, receiving, and managing both foundation and government grants for educational programs;
• Experience working with a start‑up or similar, new company or organization as it gets up and running.

Work Expectations, Salary and Benefits

This is a 40 hour/week, exempt position, eligible for benefits under the Planes of Fame Air Museum benefits package. The salary range for this position is $60,000–$100,000 per year. This position is expected to work onsite at the Museum although may be required to work offsite for meetings with donors, community partners etc. This position is expected to work Tuesday – Saturday with occasional evening and alternative hours. An offer for this role is contingent on reference checks and the passing of a background check in line with California Assembly Bill 506. This position is supported by restricted grant and reserve funding for the first two years. While the Museum may seek to continue the role, ongoing employment beyond that period is not guaranteed and will be based on available funding. Employment with the Museum remains at‑will.

Planes of Fame Air Museum is an equal opportunity employer committed to a workplace free from discrimination, harassment, retaliation, and any form of disrespectful or unprofessional conduct. We prohibit unlawful treatment of employees or applicants on the basis of any characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law.

Please send an email a resume/CV and a brief cover letter to ...@planesoffame.org.